Writers in Isolation

This is an exercise in writing dialogue, and also in thinking about the way someone may say one thing while meaning or thinking about something else. Stage 1. Invent a character. Start by thinking about something they really want. Then place your character in an everyday setting (e.g. a kitchen) and consider which five things there are likely to interest them most. Why would these be of interest? Write this down. Now think of something that the character tries to keep secret. It need not be anything particularly important. This secret affects the way the character performs an everyday activity. Describe the character performing that activity. Stage 2. Imagine the character leaving a message on a friend’s ansaphone. The character is just leaving an ordinary message but, at the back of their mind, can’t help thinking about the thing they want and the secret they are keeping. Without revealing either, what do they say? Write it down in the character’s voice. Stage 3. Your charac...

This exercise could actually be carried out while on hold to one of the help lines and essential services struggling to cope with a hugely increased number of calls. Stage 1. If you have had to make an important call lately, some of these lines may be familiar to you. All are recorded messages: “Your call is important to us”, “All of our operators are busy”, “Please continue to hold”, “We apologise for the delay” and “You are in a queue.” You may also have experienced a repeating musical track. Note down your reactions or imagined reactions to each of these statements and the music when you first hear them, when you hear them half an hour later, and then when you hear them two hours later. What might you do while waiting for a human response? Stage 2. Turn some of your responses into a monologue (a speech for one person) responding to the recorded messages and music. Read it aloud and edit it. You will probably want to include the recorded messages in your monologue....